Hooksets With Crankbaits 2025
1234567 reply :
I also have been fishing crankbaits alot lately. I am getting bit quite frequently with crankbaits, but I am having a hard time keeping fish hooked! I caught 7 the other day on crankbaits but I lost at least 7 or more. I am using 7 foot rod with a extra fast tip and I have tried sweeping my rod to the side and jerking hard when I feel the bite. I have waited until I feel the pressure of the fish and I have also set as soon as I feel some irregularity in the retrieve. I hook the fish but at least half of them are coming off after a couple seconds into the fight. I am using squarebills, xcalibur, rapala clackin crank, strike king kvd and norman's fatboys. Appreciate any insight on this!!!!
slonezp reply :
Bigger hooks maybe?
deaknh03 reply :
sharper hooks perhaps? old, dull hooks will enable the fish to shake the hooks off.
1234567 reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 5:58 AM, deaknh03 said:sharper hooks perhaps? old, dull hooks will enable the fish to shake the hooks off.
These cranks are all very new, but I definitely think better hooks are needed. Before I replace them I am thinking maybe I am doing something wrong.
zell_pop1 reply :
Try using a moderate action rod, sounds like you are using a soft plastics rod.
ChiCityBasser reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 6:04 AM, zell_pop1 said:Try using a moderate action rod, sounds like you are using a soft plastics rod.
I agree try a softer action rod or mono to slow the rod down a bit. You might also want to try triple grip hooks as well. I would run into this problem with round bend hooks and started switching my most used cranks to the mustad triple grips and don't loose nearly as many fish as I was befor the switch.
kperryman reply :
I know the perfect thing for this. I fish rapala crankbaits and they have (some don't) what is called sureset hooks. These hooks are amazing. They are extremely sharp and one of the three treble hooks is what I call a "crazy hook". It loops out further than the others. When I catch a fish on these hooks I usually don't even have to set the hook. You can buy a box of 4 of these hooks at bass pro for like $4 or so. The only disadvantage is you may get hung a little more but when that fish bites I guarantee that crazy hook was the one that got him. Here's a link from bass pro.
http://www.basspro.com/VMC-David-Fritts-Sure-Set-Treble-Hooks/product/58033/-1058406
Paul Roberts reply :
Some interesting reading on the subject:
Grey Wolf reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 5:51 AM, 1234567 said:I also have been fishing crankbaits alot lately. I am getting bit quite frequently with crankbaits, but I am having a hard time keeping fish hooked! I caught 7 the other day on crankbaits but I lost at least 7 or more. I am using 7 foot rod with a extra fast tip and I have tried sweeping my rod to the side and jerking hard when I feel the bite. I have waited until I feel the pressure of the fish and I have also set as soon as I feel some irregularity in the retrieve. I hook the fish but at least half of them are coming off after a couple seconds into the fight. I am using squarebills, xcalibur, rapala clackin crank, strike king kvd and norman's fatboys. Appreciate any insight on this!!!!
Wrong rod , the rest is probably poor technique on your part.
1234567 reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 7:53 AM, Grey Wolf said:Wrong rod , the rest is probably poor technique on your part.
Grey wolf, probably the most informative post in this thread as that's why I'm asking for help. Sorry for missing the old thread "crank baits plus hookups" but thank you Paul Roberts for posting that!!!
KenG85 reply :
Get a dobyns glass rod.....You cant lose the fish if you want to. 705 or 765cb glass.
Not_Here reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 6:52 AM, kperryman said:I know the perfect thing for this. I fish rapala crankbaits and they have (some don't) what is called sureset hooks. These hooks are amazing. They are extremely sharp and one of the three treble hooks is what I call a "crazy hook".
not to be disrespectful but honestly VMC/sure sets are garbage. I instantly change all my rapala cranks out with upgraded hooks, gammies and/or owner trebs which are waaaaay sharper and stronger. that will improve a persons hook ups vastly within itself besides the proper crank rod.
Fishmaster10 reply :
Part of it could be the hooks, part of it could be technique but I tend to lose more fish when I'm fishing lipless crankbaits as well. I'm not sure exactly why this is.
FL_Sharpshooter reply :
I'm telling you what, ever since I've started using KVD's mustad trebles, I can't even remember the last time I lost a fish. These hooks are on the pricey side, but they ARE worth it, there is no gimmick with these. Try rigging your cranks with the #2s, I promise you won't regret it. I use a 7ft medium rod with a fast taper for this as well, if that helps.
1234567 reply :
How many of you wait until you feel pressure from the fish before setting? From most of my catches it seems there's a fraction of a second to set the hook before the fish rejects it.
1234567 reply :
To add, when you hook into a crank bait fish, is it better to reel them in fast or slower?
brushhoggin reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 9:44 AM, 1234567 said:To add, when you hook into a crank bait fish, is it better to reel them in fast or slower?
i like to just make sure to keep em from jumpin. i bury my rod tip in the water, keeping him low. he knows exactly what he's gotta do to throw the hook. as far as the hook set, i've gotten in the habit of a slow motion side arm hookset, putting a decent bit of pressure on the fish and lettin him hook himself.
Chris reply :
It could be one of many things that make you loose fish on a crankbait. It could be your fast tip that is making you rip the hooks out. It could be that your line is old and lost it's spring or stretch or water logged. It could be your hooks are not the right size or style that makes the hooks not stick the fish as good as they should so they pull off. It could be that the fish are attacking the bait from above and pinning the bait and not the hook.
wisconsin heat reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 6:52 AM, kperryman said:I know the perfect thing for this. I fish rapala crankbaits and they have (some don't) what is called sureset hooks. These hooks are amazing. They are extremely sharp and one of the three treble hooks is what I call a "crazy hook". It loops out further than the others. When I catch a fish on these hooks I usually don't even have to set the hook. You can buy a box of 4 of these hooks at bass pro for like $4 or so. The only disadvantage is you may get hung a little more but when that fish bites I guarantee that crazy hook was the one that got him. Here's a link from bass pro.
http://www.basspro.com/VMC-David-Fritts-Sure-Set-Treble-Hooks/product/58033/-1058406
alot of people hate these, but i like these too. i feel you can get away with a heavier rod because the long hook is just like an ewg worm hook.
KenG85 reply :
It's all about constant tension and pressure keeping the hooks pinned. The reason fast action rods suck for cranking is that they respond to changes in tension too fast. This allows the fish to create slack and throw the hooks.
A fiberglass rod reacts much slower and it could be described as more "forgiving" under these changes in tension caused by the fish. Many techniques can be performed adequately on lots of equipment...but cranking is not one of them.
People dread jumping bass when fishing treble hooked baits, but this no longer scares me since I've been using my dobyns cranking rod. I just lift my rod and create tension, the rod keeps the fish pinned.
Get a designated cranking rod; this is an application where spending money will definately get more fish to the boat. Or you can ignore this and wonder why you keep losing fish.
1234567 reply :
Great input evrybody, thank you! I think from reading my biggest problem is the action of my rod. Any suggestions on best cranking rods that can still pull fish out of heavy weeds but still be forgiving as not to pull hooks from the fishs' mouth?
Uncle Leo reply :
To be perfectly honest I rarely set a hook hard on a crankbait bite. They tend to hook themselves if the bait is moving. When I set the hook it is to try and sink a second hook into the fish. What you really need is proper gear if you are losing fish.
1) Moderate action rod, power to suit conditions and weight of crankbait.
2) Mono Line, diameter to suit weight of bait and depth desired.
3) Sharp hooks.
A Moderate Action Rod and the stretch that mono provides will keep a fish buttoned. I believe that the Bass a throwing the hooks due to using an Extra Fast Action you need more give to keep them buttoned. With this formula a graphite or fiberglass rod will work. Fiberglass would be much better but graphite will provide more sensivitity.
KenG85 reply :
There's a few crankbait rods that do it all. I would strongly reccomend a dobyn 705cb glass or 765cb depending on whether you like shorter or longer rods.
These rods will thrown anything from Bandits and baby 1 minus's to 10 to 15' divers. And will do all of them very well.
People say glass is less sensitive then graphite. And also that glass is heavier than graphite. But thats cuz they're not fishing a Dobyns.
Ttheir champion series glass rods are as sensitive any graphite rod. And they're extremely light... like 4oz. The "5" power is MH and has plenty strenght to pull in the big ones. The rods are also so good that there's no need to fish with mono. I use flourocarbon.
They are pricey, but think about being able to use one rod for every single crankbait you own. And to be able to do it better.
Someone has one for sale in the fleamarket for 170. Just get it you'll be happy. I know I mentioned it a few times....but man it's worth mentioning 3 more times. It's simple perfection.
Delaware Valley Tackle reply :
A Mod or Mod F rod will make a big difference here as will sharp hooks. I find fish tend to hook themselves to a large degree and I set the hook on a crankbait bite with a sweep.
FL_Sharpshooter reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 9:40 AM, 1234567 said:How many of you wait until you feel pressure from the fish before setting? From most of my catches it seems there's a fraction of a second to set the hook before the fish rejects it.
With the constant reeling tension your putting on it, you should feel that bite immediately, atleast I always do. Most of the time I don't even have to set the hook, but I always try to as soon as I feel that resistance.
NBR reply :
On 4/15/2011 at 5:51 AM, 1234567 said:I also have been fishing crankbaits alot lately. I am getting bit quite frequently with crankbaits, but I am having a hard time keeping fish hooked! I caught 7 the other day on crankbaits but I lost at least 7 or more. I am using 7 foot rod with a extra fast tip and I have tried sweeping my rod to the side and jerking hard when I feel the bite. I have waited until I feel the pressure of the fish and I have also set as soon as I feel some irregularity in the retrieve. I hook the fish but at least half of them are coming off after a couple seconds into the fight. I am using squarebills, xcalibur, rapala clackin crank, strike king kvd and norman's fatboys. Appreciate any insight on this!!!!
Lund Explorer reply :
Aside from the fact that no one brand name of rod is the only thing you'll need, there's plenty of good advice here. But there is one other aspect I didn't see mentioned.
Of the 7 you caught, where were they hooked?
I've noticed that there are many days when I'll lose a few fish on crankbaits and the ones I do get into the boat are usually barely hooked towards the outside of the mouth. This tells me that the fish are hitting the bait, but just aren't that sold on it. I rarely lose fish when they are swallowing the bait.
NBR reply :
I also use cranks alot second only to soft plastics. First you will always lose more fish with trebles. I think the reason is the narrower gap on trebles, so a slightly larger treble will help. I don't usually change hooks but when I do Igo up one size maybe two if the new hooks have a lighter gauge wire. I pinch the barbs on all the hooks I use so I am very aware of keeping the line tight. I don't lose many maybe 1 in 10 or more. You don't say what kind of line. Mono is more forgiving and particuarly if your rod is graphite. I have some fiberglass cranking rods but I prefer one of my graphite rods. I have always used a soft easy to cast mono but I am slowly converting to fluro for better depth.
Be careful that your hook set is not so hard as to tear a hole in the critters mouth. With sharp hooks I don't think you need to cross their eyes.
Not_Here reply :
all my set ups i use braid~so when i'm throwing cranks/treb lures i back off on my drag also. so what i'm doing is using the lighter set drag as a shock absorber to assist at not ripping it out their mouth.
BILLYsobx reply :
In my experience the crankbait is the one lure that if that bass wants to eat that crankbait he eats it so he hooks himself then u just give it a pull. Just remember trebles are smaller than say a 5 0 wide gap worm hook where u can ****** him all the way to the boat, if u try to force a crankbait bass especially bigger ones the hooks can rip out. In my experience I lost more crankbait bass because I tryed to force them to the boat. In the past few yrs I've lost very few I think mainly because I learned to never give em slack, don't let them jump and let em swim u never know when that tail treble is outside of their mouth and only one of those hooks has em a 5lber can make one last lunge by the boat while u have maybe 4 ft of line out and even with mono there is not enough stretch to keep the hooks from tearing out. In short u never know how that bass is hooked on ur crankbait so treat em all like they are barely hooked
Chris reply :
It also could be your drag setting which will also effect your lures running depth if it isn't tight enough. You want to have the drag set high enough for the hook set then backed off for the fight especially if your getting bit at a distance.
Avalonjohn44 reply :
On 4/16/2011 at 12:56 PM, Chris said:It also could be your drag setting which will also effect your lures running depth if it isn't tight enough. You want to have the drag set high enough for the hook set then backed off for the fight especially if your getting bit at a distance.
This. I think this might be the best advice yet. I use a 7ft MH fast tip rod for cranking, and once I got my drag set properly I rarely lose a fish. I lose more fish on EWG hooks than on trebles.
SquareBill reply :
Are using mono or fluoro line? I have found sometimes that when I'm fishing cranks with fluorocarbon, due to the extra sensitivity and less stretch of fluoro line, I feel the strikes just a hair to soon which causes me to sometimes rip the bait away from or out of the fish's mouth before it can take the bait in enough for a good solid hookup. This may or may not be your problem, but if you are losing fish in the first 1-2 seconds of the hookup, then it may be something to consider.
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